1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of removing a leading end part of a weft yarn picked on a shuttleless loom, such as a fluid jet loom, and a weft yarn end removing mechanism for removing a leading end part of a picked weft yarn.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a leading end part of a weft yarn 3 picked on a shuttleless loom 1 is caught by catch cords 4 to hold the picked weft yarn 3 tight, and the picked weft yarn 3 is beaten up with a reed 6. Subsequently, the leading end part of the weft yarn 3 extending between a selvage of a fabric 5 on an arriving side opposite a picking side and the catch cords 4 is cut off by a cutting device 7. Portions of the catch cords 4 used for catching leading end parts of picked weft yarns 3 are disposed of together with the cut leading end parts of the picked weft yarns 3. Thus, the catch cords 4 are not used for constructing the fabric 5, but are used only for weaving the fabric 5 and consumed wastefully.
FIG. 2 shows a weft yarn end removing mechanism previously proposed to avoid the wasteful consumption of yarns that do not contribute to constructing the fabric 5, such as the catch cords 4. This weft yarn end removing mechanism catches a leading end part of a picked weft yarn 3 by a tightening nozzle 8 to hold the picked weft yarn 3 tight, transfers the leading end part from the tightening nozzle 8 to a suction device 9, and cuts the leading end part of the weft yarn 3 off the picked weft yarn 3 at a position between the selvage of the fabric 5 and the suction device 9 by a cutting device 10 as shown in FIG. 2. The function of the catch cords 4 is replaced with the cooperative operation of the tightening nozzle 8 and the suction device 9.
When the weft yarn end removing mechanism shown in FIG. 2 is used, one end of the reed 6 on the side of the suction device 9 must be spaced from the suction device 9 so that the reed 6 may not strike against the suction device 9 during a beat-up operation. Consequently, reeds of different lengths must be prepared for weaving fabrics of different widths, respectively.